Sandals to Manage New AC Hotels by Marriott Property in Kingston

In a departure from its all-inclusive formula, Sandals Resorts International has partnered with Marriott International to bring the lifestyle AC Hotels by Marriott brand to the Caribbean.

The 220-room AC Kingston hotel in Jamaica's capital, the centerpiece of a mixed-use development in the Jamaica House neighborhood of Kingston, will also mark the first time that Sandals will manage a brand that it did not create.

Ground was broken on Jan. 20; opening is slated for winter 2019.

Marriott's only other Kingston property is a hotel under its Courtyard brand. Marriott acquired a stake in Madrid-based AC Hotels in 2010 and introduced the AC by Marriott brand a year later. The brand has almost 90 hotels worldwide.

AC Kingston rates will include lodging only; meals and beverages will be billed separately. 

It will include a 10,000-square-foot conference center, full-service restaurants and valet and self-serve parking. In addition to the hotel, plans call for a BMW showroom, a car-rental facility, wellness salon and the Avenue, a promenade of event space and retail and dining outlets.

"There is a renewed energy in Kingston," said Adam Stewart, Sandals CEO and deputy chairman. "We plan to create a destination within a destination where meetings and events happen alongside shopping, dining and salon services.

"AC Hotels by Marriott is the right brand to bring this vision to life."

To help visitors explore Kingston and its surroundings, an outpost of Island Routes Caribbean Adventures, the Caribbean tour company founded by Stewart, will be located in the complex.

"Because of solid partners like Sandals, Marriott is able to continue to expand our presence in the Caribbean and Latin America," said Alejandro Acevedo, vice president of development, Marriott International Caribbean and Latin America.

Source: Travel Weekly